No fewer than seven people have died and numerous others remain unaccounted for following a vessel carrying approximately two hundred people trying to get to European shores overturned in waters near the Gambian coast, reports confirm.
The boat overturned on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "stranded on a sandbar", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for the remaining passengers who were aboard the capsized craft that was heading towards the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for migrants from Africa trying to reach European nations.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and estimates in excess of nine thousand individuals have lost their lives in the attempt.
Search and Rescue Efforts
In the aftermath of the disaster, the navy launched a search-and-rescue operation, deploying several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that joined the effort, the defense officials confirmed.
Officials state some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who died have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are described as being in serious condition and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a frequent corridor taken by asylum seekers trying to reach European countries, frequently via dangerous journeys across ocean and terrain.
Recently, the European Union has established pacts with multiple Maghreb states aimed at limiting illegal migration.
